Odden has been talking to public relations professionals for a long time about how to diversify not only their thinking, but also their skill sets. He described how, many years ago, when he would talk about search engine optimization (SEO) at public relations conferences, everyone would look at him with blank stares. He said this past year was the first time that conference attendees were jumping out of their seats to ask questions about how to incorporate SEO into their content and storytelling.

In his new book "Optimize," Odden discusses how to approach reaching particular audiences by thinking about what they care about, their pain points, and their goals. This forms an editorial approach that ties together marketing and public relations.

Inside PR is a weekly podcast about public relations and social media, hosted by Gini Dietrich in Chicago, Joseph Thornley in Ottawa and Martin Waxman in Toronto and produced by Thornley Fallis. Each week, the three industry veterans take a look at the state of the PR industry, explore topical and provocative issues, discuss listener comments, and even interview an interesting guest or two.